


Lovely Dying

by DarkEnvy



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Drama, F/F, Magic, Other, Suspense
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-15
Updated: 2015-04-16
Packaged: 2018-03-07 17:25:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3177628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkEnvy/pseuds/DarkEnvy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What starts as a tickle in her throat grows into a full force cold, and Emma Swan can’t believe her luck. Getting sick just when she needs to be focusing on Henry, who is apparently acting a little odd lately. But when things escalate, and Henry suddenly disappears, Emma is completely thrown off track. Because her illness is getting worse, and all signs seem to be pointing at Regina being responsible for getting her sick, but could Regina really be going to such lengths to get rid of the supposed Savior? And can Emma put that suspicion aside long enough to work with the supposed Evil Queen to find their son?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The shrill, piercing sound of garbled music cut through the still air, jolting a very tousled Emma Swan from her sleep. A rather unattractive noise, between a growling grunt and a groan, slipped into the disturbed silence as she twisted under her sheet to slide her hand clumsily across the mattress. Without opening her eyes, she knew it was still dark; her whole body was heavy, signifying waking before her usual six hours of sleep. As her hand connected with her cell phone, wedged under the unoccupied pillow next to her, she wrapped her fingers around the device and slid it out into a position she could see the screen in. The blinding light seared into her retinas, reminding her of said darkness that still presided outside and in the bedroom.

Emma was starting to wonder why she had thought that this Sheriff thing was a good idea. Woken by phone calls at all hours of the night by ridiculous things, or by Leroy and his usual drunken idiocy, was getting real old, real fast. She wanted to prove something to Henry, and she had; the bad guy didn’t always have to come out on top, and Emma had very surprisingly crushed Regina and Sydney in that election. But really? What did she think she was accomplishing, being a stranger in a small town that everyone knew everyone in, stepping into a leadership role? She may as well be chopping off her own head and offering it to Regina herself.

“’Lo?” Emma mumbled into the phone, not even bothering to try to squint past the bright screen to see who the hell was waking her up at this random hour. The voice on the other end wasn’t expected, yet it was; she _would_ be calling to wake her up at this hour.

“What do you want, Regina?” Emma groaned, voice thick with sleep and lingering exhaustion. She wasn’t awake enough to deal with this. Her brain usually snapped right into alert mode at so much as a prickle of Regina’s presence, but the blonde just couldn’t force herself into it. She had slept twelve hours all week, and all she wanted was to never have to get up again.

“Good morning to you, too, Sheriff Swan,” Regina drawled into the phone. “Not a morning person, I see.”

“Unless you have something to say, I’m going back to sleep,” Emma all but snapped. She could hear Regina draw in a steady breath on the other line, but her sleep-addled brain didn’t process that it probably meant Regina was about to lash out for Emma’s attitude. Not like the blonde cared all that much.

“I was calling to inquire about coffee before our shifts, but if you’ll take that attitude all morning, I will go alone.”

Emma’s eyes snapped back open from the fallen-shut position they had returned to. Was she seriously so tired that she had misheard? She wouldn’t put it past Regina to mean something along the lines of Emma bringing her coffee, but if she really decided to go that far, she was just encouraging a whole different kind of war. Tired, half asleep mind or not, Emma wasn’t going to lie down and take it.

“If you mean will I get out of bed at…” Her head turned to the side, squinting eyes searching out the bedside alarm she never used. “Six ten in the morning to go get you coffee because you think I owe you something, then no.”

“Honestly, you cannot be this immature,” Regina snapped with a huff. Emma could practically hear her rolling her eyes. “If you decide to grow up in the next forty five minutes, I will be at Granny’s waiting for you. We need to talk.” With that, the line went dead, and Emma pulled her phone from her ear to stare at it in slight confusion. She wasn’t sure why Regina still managed to completely throw her off; it wasn’t like the blonde wasn’t used to this kind of behavior from the Mayor by now. But asking her to coffee so they could talk was definitely different. Regina could hardly stand being in the same room with her for work, let alone _coffee._

Pretending she had absolutely no worry whatsoever about what they needed to talk about was surprisingly simple for Emma as she finally pulled herself from bed and looked around for her pants. She honestly couldn’t remember where the heck she had thrown them the previous night when trying to get them free from her legs. All she had really been worried about was shutting her eyes before that less-than-six-hours-of-sleep mark caught up and passed her. Giving up, she crossed to the closet, pulling down yoga pants and a tank top from her top shelf. Well, at least she had showered yesterday, because it looked like Regina was yet again leaving her with very little time to do the important things. Forty-five minutes would be more than enough time for Emma to get to Granny’s, but not if she got in the shower first.

As quietly as she could, Emma slipped from her room and made her way towards the staircase that led to the main floor of the apartment she shared with her roommate. It was way too early to be waking the teacher up; which was why she was shocked to find her already in the kitchen, leaned on the kitchen counter and sipping on a cup of coffee as she read over a piece of paper in her hand.

“Do you ever sleep?” Emma asked, making her way around the counter to pick up her coat from the back of the chair. “Sorry,” she added, waving the jacket in her hand. “Meant to take this upstairs with me.”

“It’s alright,” Mary Margaret Blanchard said kindly as she glanced up from her paper. “You hardly leave a mess around here, Emma. It’s just a jacket.” It was always surprising how understanding the woman could be, especially since Emma was so used to roommates that flipped the hell out when her jacket was laying around forgotten. Then again, this was a totally different ballpark now. Mary Margaret was nothing like any of her previous roommates. “You’re up early,” Mary Margaret notes, returning to her piece of paper and letting her eyes skim.

“Regina apparently wants to talk,” Emma said with a slight eye roll. “Asked me to coffee and everything. Not sure if I should be expecting a promotion or an ambush.”

“Oh honestly, she wouldn’t ambush you,” Mary Margaret said with an amused look on her face. Emma gave her a look, one she could apparently feel, because she glanced up from her paper to see it and hid a slight smile. “Okay, maybe she would.”

“Yeah, exactly,” Emma said as she pulled her jacket on. “Because you and I both know it’s that before it’s a promotion.” Making sure she had everything, she headed for the door. “See you tonight,” she called over her shoulder. “Dinner, right?” She waited for the hum of confirmation and the softly spoken ‘Have a nice day’ before exiting the apartment and heading down towards her car.

xxxx

The drive over was a lot less calm than she had expected it to be. Most of the time, Emma had no issue with seeing Regina, because she knew she could handle anything the woman threw at her. Regina liked to think she always had the upper hand, but Emma knew how to play her game better than the Mayor understood. She had grown up in circumstances that required her to be able to read people, and work around their bullshit. She was alert at all times. So why was she suddenly feeling this stupid pit in her stomach? It couldn’t have been anything serious. Then again, she was willing to bet that Regina wouldn’t have any interest in her presence if it weren’t.

_Damnit_ , she thought to herself. _This is probably some new scheme of hers to keep me away from Henry. She’s going to sit me down and rip into me until I agree to just get the hell out of Storybrooke._

Emma was _not_ amused with this new case of self-doubt. Like she was going to let Regina Mills run her out of town over a few ridiculous threats.

Emma parked her car in front of Granny’s diner and shut the engine down, taking a deep breath and running a hand through her hair. Regina was already inside; her black Mercedes was parked a few spots away from Emma. So much for trying to be early. Regina would always have that one up on her, it seemed. Granny’s opened at six, so Regina was probably already present when she even called Emma in the first place. A weird tickle in Emma’s throat distracted her briefly, and she cleared her throat to rid herself of the discomfort. Maybe it was just her nerves playing with her, or the fact that she hadn’t had anything to drink yet that morning.

With a heavy sigh and another deep breath, Emma got out of her car and locked it behind her. As she was heading for the door of the diner, she deduced that her entire feeling about this situation was just a lack of desire for a fight today. Emma could hold her own against Regina, but she didn’t exactly go out of her way looking for a reason to provoke her. Not anymore, at least. There was a point there for a minute that the blonde was trying to make it quite clear to the Mayor where she stood, and when things had only gotten worse, Emma had been the one with enough maturity to back off. For Henry’s sake. She really didn’t want any trouble today. Opening the door, she stepped inside, coughing slightly at the change in air; it was surprisingly cold outside that day, but the room she was in was nice and warm.

As Emma slid into the booth across from Regina, the brunette didn’t even look up from the open newspaper she had spread across the table in front of her. It was a full minute before Emma even decided to announce her presence. “You wanted coffee at some ungodly hour in the morning,” she said. “So what’s up?”

“Miss Swan,” Regina greeted flatly, though her eyes still didn’t lift from the newspaper. Emma only coughed in response, placing her arm over her mouth as her eyes rolled. Formalities weren’t even worth anything to her anymore, and yet Regina still insisted on them.

“Seriously, Regina, what do you want?” Emma asked after a few stretched moments of silence between them. “Now that I’m up, I may as well be getting things done, and I can’t exactly do that if you’re sitting there not telling me what you wanted me here for.” Of course, Emma could just get up and walk out as long as Regina was going to be difficult, but she didn’t actually add that part in. The no fighting, no drama rule was still at the forefront of her mind.

Finally, Regina flipped the newspaper shut and folded her hands over it as she lifted her gaze to meet Emma’s. Her usual stony expression was there, but the blonde was surprised to see a faint touch of concern within the brown of her eyes. It was something Emma only ever saw directed at, or about, one person, and suddenly Emma had a feeling she knew why she was here. And her abdomen exploded with her own wave of concern at the thought.

“Has Henry been acting odd to you?” Regina asked bluntly. Clearly she was in no mood to beat around that issue. Emma just looked at her for a long moment, brow slowly furrowing as she thought about it. She barely got to see the kid, thanks to Regina’s absolute loathing of her, so she wasn’t sure what Regina was expecting her to say. It was a little difficult to sneak around with him when Regina was often parked across the street from his school, making sure Henry didn’t get in Emma’s car when the final bell rang.

“From what I’ve gotten to see of him, no,” Emma said finally. “He’s seemed fine to me.” A pause as she choked back another cough; that damn tickle in her throat was refusing to go away. “Why? What’s going on?” She was already aware of Henry’s flat out refusal to even give Regina the time of day most of the time, and Emma wasn’t sure how Regina would be able to detect strange behavior if the boy wouldn’t even let her in. But she had raised him all his life, so she supposed it came with being a mother. Emma honestly wouldn’t know.

Freeing one hand from the clasped position, Regina reached for her coffee cup, taking a slow drink. In that time, Ruby finally showed up at their table, offering Emma a hot chocolate with cinnamon she hadn’t ordered, but took gratefully anyway, if only to get rid of the damn tickle in her throat. She took a long drink from her mug as Regina took one from hers; Regina’s cup was first back on the table, as Emma was practically chugging her drink. Regina’s brow lifted slightly, her nose wrinkling just so, but she didn’t comment.

“His grades have shot down from their usual standards,” Regina answered, hand still wrapped around her cup so her fingers could tap thoughtfully against it. “And as much as I wanted to blame you for it, I’ve made certain he stayed away from you in an attempt to gauge whether or not that really was the reason. They still haven’t improved.”

“Maybe he’s just in some new material he doesn’t understand now,” Emma said with a shrug after lowering her mug. “He’s not going to ask for help if he doesn’t think he’ll get it.”

Regina snorted softly, shaking her head. She went to speak again, but another small cough from Emma cut her off. She waited a moment, gazing at the blonde, waiting for another interruption, but one didn’t come. So she spoke again. “He’s always been very educated, very good grades, and knows when to ask for help,” she said. “I don’t see why he would choose now to just stop seeking out assistance if he knows he needs it.”

The blonde could see plenty of reasons, but she kept her mouth shut. No fighting, no drama. “Is it just his grades?” Emma asked. Regina shook her head.

“Despite his refusal to speak to me anyway, it seems to have gotten worse,” Regina said. “He doesn’t even want to eat anything I cook him, and he’s constantly locked in his room. When I check on him to offer him time for video games, he claims to not feel like it. He’s always felt like playing video games.” Regina scowled at the amused glint that had entered Emma’s eyes. “ _What?”_

“Nothing,” Emma said with a smirk. “It’s just, you know he’s a growing boy, right? He could have, uh…discovered something. And that might be why he doesn’t want to come out of his room.”

The horror on Regina’s face was so comical, Emma actually laughed out loud. It ended in a coughing fit, but oh, was it so worth it. “I’m just saying,” Emma rushed to add before Regina could speak, still amused. “He’s going to discover it eventually. Some of them discover it younger than others, and they don’t understand what it means, other than that it feels good.”

“He’s _ten!”_ Regina exclaimed, a little louder than she meant to. She took a moment to reel herself in before continuing, voice more controlled and a lot less loud this time. “I’ve never even come close to exposing him to anything that could give him the idea that he could do that.”

It really blew Emma away sometimes how Regina thought that she had full influence over Henry’s life. It was like the woman didn’t believe in outside sources at all. Taking a slow breath, Emma closed her eyes briefly, then opened them and looked at Regina seriously. “What about Graham?” she asked quietly.

It had the expected result. The air got tense, Regina’s whole body went rigid, and her eyes completely glossed over with the armor Emma was so used to seeing. Any and all concern was gone. “What about Graham?” Regina asked shortly, tone hard. Emma shrugged weakly.

“Did they talk?” Emma asked, voice quiet. “Do you think maybe Henry found out about it and asked Graham, and maybe Graham explained it to him?”

Regina seemed to be thinking for a moment, though her hard gaze bore into Emma’s bright green eyes threateningly. Emma and Regina didn’t get along, but there had been a bit of a silent agreement that the mention of Graham wouldn’t be an accepted topic. But what else could Emma do in this situation?

“We don’t even know if that’s what is even going on,” Regina said finally. “And if it is, and Graham spoke to him about it, I suppose there’s nothing to do about it now.” Not like there would have been something to do about it anyway. And Regina had a point; that was just one of the many possibilities of what could be going on, and neither of them had enough evidence to determine what exactly Henry was doing or feeling.

When it came down to it, none of their logic really mattered. What did matter was that they needed to figure out if Henry was alright, and Emma wasn’t sure if Regina even realized that she was basically asking the blonde for help, but Emma was volunteering her services anyway. “How about I pick him up from school today?” she offered, and quickly cut in when it looked like Regina was about to protest. “No offense, but he won’t talk to you. I can at least try to get him to talk to me. And if that doesn’t work, we’ll think of a new plan. Okay?” Henry was theirs, whether Regina liked it or not. Both of theirs. She was going to have to suck it up and let Emma help if she wanted to figure things out.

“Fine,” Regina said after a short sigh of frustration. “But you will have him home before dinner, and you will call me if something happens.”

Emma had no idea what Regina expected to happen, but Emma nodded anyway in agreement. Another cough, this time into her napkin, and then Emma reached into her pocket for money for her hot chocolate.

“You may want to get that cough taken care of,” Regina said nonchalantly as she paid for her own coffee. “I will not have my son waking up ill.” With that, she stood, and was out the door within seconds of getting her jacket on. Emma just glared after her; it didn’t last long, because she was coughing again almost immediately.

xxxx

“You look horrible,” Henry noted as he climbed into Emma’s bug at the end of the school day, dropping his backpack at his feet and turning to look at her. Emma honestly wasn’t surprised by the comment; the tickle in her throat had escalated to a full on hoarse cough, and she was starting to feel a little under the weather. Her lips were swollen from the amount of times Emma had pressed a napkin over them, and her face was forever red with the effort it took to cough. She had decided that she wasn’t going to keep Henry long; she didn’t want him to get sick, if that was what was happening to her, and she had a feeling it was. They would talk for a while, she would take him for ice cream, and she would take him home so Regina didn’t have a total and complete meltdown. Emma _knew_ she wasn’t feeling up to one of those now, even less than she was feeling up to drama this morning.

“I’ll be okay, just a little cold, I think,” Emma said as she started the car. “Ice cream?” She looked over at him, and he nodded enthusiastically with a smile. Emma wasn’t noticing anything off yet; this was pretty much the way he always acted around her. So maybe whatever it was, it was directed at Regina specifically. Or it really was his discovery of some of the simple body pleasures.

With the town being so small, it didn’t take long for them to get to the ice cream parlor. Emma parked and shut the car off, and Henry was out the door before she even got her seatbelt unbuckled. Whether it was because he was hyperactive, or she was just having slow reactions that day, she had no idea, but she was soon following him into the shop anyway. When they were settled with their ice cream, Emma reached across the table to mess up Henry’s hair a little.

“So how’ve you been, kid?” Emma asked. “I barely get to see you anymore.”

“Yeah, cause Mom’s been worse than ever,” Henry muttered, rolling his eyes and taking a bite of his banana split. “I failed a couple of tests, and now she’s punishing me.”

“From what she told me, it sounds like you’re failing more than a couple of tests,” Emma said gently. Henry looked away guiltily, though he was certainly very defensive about it.

“She talked to you? What, so you’re on her side?”

“Hey, I’m not on anyone’s side,” Emma said, lifting her hands. Now she was beginning to see where the odd behavior was coming in. He definitely had a little bit more of an attitude than he usually did. She had to wonder if someone was messing with him. “Is everything okay at school? No one’s bothering you or anything?”

“Everything’s fine,” Henry said. “Just like I told her. I’m fine.”

Jackpot. He wasn’t fine. He wasn’t looking at her, and his voice was quiet, which meant he was trying to cover up a lie. Taking a slow drink of her milkshake, Emma let the cold soothe her throat in an attempt to chase away any incoming coughs before she spoke again. “What do you mean when you say your Mom’s being worse than ever?” she tried. Maybe she could get some answers about how things were at home, at least. Henry didn’t seem real enthused to answer, but he did after another couple of bites of his split.

“She just won’t leave me alone,” Henry said finally. “And I keep…” Trailing off, he shook his head. “Nothing.”

“Henry, you keep what?” Emma asked, leaning across the table. “You can talk to me, remember?” He still looked reluctant, but again, he gave in and spoke.

“She’s up to something,” he said. “I don’t know what. But I don’t want to be around whatever it is, so I lock myself in my room, and she still doesn’t leave me alone. I just want her to leave me alone until she’s done doing whatever she’s doing. But I don’t want her to hurt anyone.”

So they were back to this. Emma had actually started seeing a little progress between him and Regina lately, but now he was reverting right back to thinking she was evil and hurting people. Which, yeah, Regina technically was hurting people, just not in the way Henry believed she was. Emma was pretty sure they would have caught Regina in the act of actual magic by now if it really were the case.

“Kid, I doubt she’s going to hurt anyone,” Emma said soothingly. She didn’t get much further before she was coughing again, picking up a napkin to cover her lips with. Damnit. This was getting really tedious. Emma hadn’t been sick in ages. She needed a cough drop or something.

“She’s probably just doing her usual Mayor crap and digging into people’s business she shouldn’t be,” Emma said once she was finished coughing, her voice hoarse and her throat sore. “If she’s sneaking around or something, I can guarantee that’s why. It’s what she does.” Sure, it didn’t put Regina in a great light, but it put her in a better one than Henry was trying to. Not like Emma thought her to be the most innocent person in the world, but she at least tried to get Henry to like her a little more than he did.

Henry didn’t respond for a long time. He looked completely dejected, and not entirely convinced by Emma’s words. When he did speak, it was to change the subject entirely. “You’re sick,” he said. “You should go home. Mom’s going to freak if you miss work.” He sounded so much older than his age, and it made Emma’s chest hurt a little.

“She is, isn’t she?” Emma asked with a soft sigh. That sigh brought on another cough, and it took all of the energy left in her – which wasn’t much – not to start cursing in front of Henry. He was right; she really needed to go home, get herself some tea, and maybe pop a few Benadryl. She would be better when she woke up; these things never lasted more than a day or so for her. “Come on, I’ll take you home.”

Henry finished his split, and Emma opted to take her milkshake with her, despite it being a little chilly outside. It was quickly approaching Winter air, and that was surely why Emma was suddenly getting sick. Change in season never did agree with her, though it had been a while since she had escalated to feeling like this. When Emma pulled up in front of Regina’s mansion, Henry leaned over to hug her, but Emma leaned away.

“Nuh uh,” Emma warned. “Next time. If you get sick, your mother’s going to kill me, and I really don’t feel like being blamed for that.” Thankfully, Henry wasn’t offended; he seemed more amused than anything. With a quick wave, he was out of the car and hurrying into the house, no doubt to lock himself in his room once more.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I sat on this one for ages, because there was a point I couldn’t figure out if I was ending there or continuing. I figured it out, so here you go - shorter chapter, but hopefully worth the wait. Bear with me, guys, still working on it! Slowly but surely! Please let me know what you think of this rewrite! I don’t own Once Upon a Time or it’s characters, blah blah…you get the idea.

Tea and Benadryl had done absolutely nothing for Emma. It had taken her an hour to get to sleep due to so much coughing, and when she finally did wake up, it was with sore muscles and an even more intense cough than she had gone to sleep with. She either had a cold, the flu, or both, and it was absolutely unappealing to her. Shifting uncomfortably in her bed, Emma groaned as she was forced to roll over and look at the time; 6:43am. She may have woken up in time, but there was no way she was going to work today. Regina’s attitude be damned; a blanket, some cough drops, and mindless television had never sounded better to her than it did right then.

It took even more effort to sit up, and by the time she was on her feet, Emma felt like she would collapse and never get back up. And then her stupid phone rang, and she was cursing the world as she bent back over to fish the device from beneath her pillow. Her body caved, and she sat back down so she could answer the phone and not have to split focus between speaking and staying up right. “Hello?” she said into the phone. It barely sounded like her voice. That explained the long pause on the other end, before a confused, “Miss Swan?” followed.

“Regina,” Emma replied with a weak cough. “It’s seven in the morning. What do you want?” The blonde was absolutely not in the mood for the third degree, or any other kind of typical Mayor Mills treatment, for that matter. She just wanted to lie on the couch and go back to sleep.

“I was going to ask you to meet me for coffee again, but considering you sound like you’ve been hit with a fresh wave of the plague, perhaps we should do it another time,” Regina practically drawled on the other end of the phone. Emma couldn’t tell if she sounded more disgusted or more annoyed. Like Emma _chose_ to be sick like this when Regina just happened to need her for some stupid spy game she was pulling on their kid.

“I can come,” Emma said after a few moments of thought. “Just…just give me a while. I want to get in the shower first. I’ll meet you at your office.”

“You’ll do no such thing,” Regina replied sharply. “I won’t have you infecting everything you touch in my office.” There was a pause, and then, “I’ll be at your apartment in twenty minutes. At least that way I have the option to change clothes and disinfect before going to work.” There was no room for argument – Regina hung up the phone. Sighing, Emma tossed the phone down and rubbed her eyes; Mary Margaret was still asleep, and Emma really did not want to wake her with Regina in the house. Maybe she could get Regina to stay in the hallway.

First thing was first, however, and Emma crawled from the bed and into her bathroom. The shower was heavenly, and did wonders for her nose. Her muscles loosened up a little bit, and she could walk better after she got out. She really didn’t put a lot of effort into her appearance, however; yoga pants and a tank top were the choice of the day, and she didn’t even bother trying to dry her hair. Regina would be there soon, and as long as Emma’s hair was, it would take at least ten minutes to get it completely dry. Sick or not, she would just let the air take care of it for her. Heading to the kitchen as quietly as she could, she didn’t even realize it was still a school day until she rounded the corner and saw Mary Margaret standing at the counter with a newspaper and a cup of coffee.

“Emma,” the shorter brunette woman greeted with a kind smile. Said smile immediately turned into a frown when she saw the state the blonde was in. “You look terrible…”

Emma forced a half smile. “Yeah,” she agreed, not amused in the least to find her voice still unnaturally hoarse. “I’ll be fine. Just an extra day of sleep or something to get rid of this cough.” She hadn’t coughed since she had been in bed, thankfully, so hopefully that meant progress. She took the cup of coffee that Mary Margaret offered her and stayed on the other side of the counter, smiling tiredly when the woman waved goodbye and left for work. Emma glanced at the time; Regina was five minutes late. That in itself was unusual.

It wasn’t until Emma had stretched out on the couch with a blanket, some tea, and the remote that a sharp knock came at the door. Sighing, Emma closed her eyes; she knew she shouldn’t have lay down yet. Getting back up was painful and drained the last of her energy, and by the time she got the door opened, Regina looked impatient and a little annoyed. And a little frazzled, if Emma were honest. “Nice of you to finally show up,” Emma said weakly, none of her usual punch in her words. Regina looked her over slowly, lip curled in complete disapproval and disgust.

“I suppose I shouldn’t expect you at the station this week,” was the only response Regina had for her before brushing by her and into the apartment. Like she owned the place or something. Annoyed, Emma pushed the door shut and returned to her place on the couch, picking up her tea and not offering Regina anything to drink.

“What do you want, Regina?”

“You spoke to Henry, I’m assuming,” Regina said, placing her briefcase down on the counter in the kitchen and laying her coat neatly next to it. Emma only nodded, despite Regina not being able to see her. It didn’t matter; Regina continued as she reentered the living area, heels clicking on the hardwood floor. “He locked himself in his room as soon as he came home, and I could barely get him out for school this morning. This is only getting worse.”

And this was where Emma saw a dilemma in her path. She could shrug it off and pretend like she hadn’t gotten anything out of Henry, like the kid was just going through a phase, or she could let on a bit of what he really thought. She didn’t particularly like Regina all that much, even though she understood her; and she was trying to keep in Henry’s good graces. She owed him that much. But Regina was his mother, whether Emma or Henry liked it or not. And despite everything, Emma could see how hard Regina tried, only to get it thrown completely back in her face.

“He thinks you’re hiding something from him,” Emma said finally. “He doesn’t know what, but he’s upset. He doesn’t like not knowing.” The wince that passed Regina’s features confirmed it for Emma, and her eyes narrowed as best as they could in her condition. “ _Are_ you hiding something from him?”

“Don’t be stupid,” Regina snapped, her mask sliding back into place effortlessly. “What could I have to hide?” She didn’t let Emma answer. “He’s just too young to be thinking like this already…”

For a brief moment, Emma actually felt sorry for Regina. But then she reminded herself that the woman in front of her was a class expert at manipulation, and this whole thing could have been a game right from the very start. She liked to think that Regina wouldn’t include Henry in any of her manipulative bull crap, but at this point, Emma didn’t know _what_ to believe. She was going to have to start keeping tabs on Regina once she started feeling a little better.

“You look terrible.”

Blinking out of her thoughts, Emma’s head turned just slightly to look at Regina. Her features had softened slightly, but not enough to actually bring down that stoic mask, and she had crossed her arms over herself. Maybe the chill throughout Emma’s body wasn’t just the fever talking, after all. But the fact that Regina had just acknowledged her illness in the exact same way that Mary Margaret had struck a nerve, and she shifted a little before looking away.

“I’m fine,” she muttered, almost defiantly. She would be better within a couple of days. She would make sure of it.

There was a long silence before Regina spoke again, and the bite had returned to her undertone. “I do hope you haven’t gotten my son sick,” she said shortly. “He’s prone to germs, and it takes very little time for his health to decline.” Emma rolled her eyes, then closed them as she lifted a hand to rub at her temple. She couldn’t even dignify that with a response. Her head was starting to pound, and the sound of Regina’s voice was making her far more irritable than usual.

“Is there a specific reason you’re here,” Emma asked, hand dropping so she could level Regina with as flat of a look as she could muster (which wasn’t all that difficult, considering her condition), “or did you just come here to poke at me about my health? Because I really don’t feel like listening to it.” She would rather be curled up on the couch asleep; exactly what she was going to do when Regina finally got the hell out. But it really didn’t appear that Regina intended on leaving her alone any time soon, so Emma braced herself for a morning of little rest and much headache.

“I don’t want you at work today,” Regina said, avoiding the jab completely. “And I don’t want to see you at my office until you get over this plague. I have some paperwork for you that you can work on here. I need it in a few days.”

That wasn’t why she was here, Emma knew, but she would take it. She wasn’t up for anything more dramatic than that. “I’ll start it after my nap,” Emma muttered. “Leave it on the coffee table.”

Regina did just that, opening her briefcase on the counter and extracting a handful of papers that she set down on the coffee table in front of Emma. Straightening, the brunette turned towards Emma, her features only softening slightly as she gave her a once over. “Get some rest.” Emma half smiled in response. They were both oblivious to the brief moment of camaraderie that hung between them. Finally, Regina turned, picking up her things and leaving the apartment. Emma was asleep shortly after.

xxxx

The expectation of sleep helping her feel a little less dead was completely thrown out the window when Emma woke up feeling a lot worse than she had through this entire bought of illness. Mary Margaret was home, which meant it was getting late, and the blonde knew she had to get up and start the paperwork Regina had left her. But she could barely move. Her limbs felt like heavy tree trunks, and there was so much pressure in her head that she was almost positive she was having an aneurism. The strangest, and most uncomfortable, was the thrumming in her veins. It felt like electricity slowly flowing through her, starting at the top of her chest and moving down through her entire body. Shifting felt like she had run ten miles. She just barely managed the soft groan the escaped her.

Mary Margaret, who sat in the chair next to the couch, shifting forward in her seat. Her expression was painted with worry; she had never seen Emma look so pasty before. Her friend looked like she was ready to be on her deathbed, and the pixie haired woman wished that was an exaggeration. “Emma,” Mary Margaret said softly. “Emma, I’ve called Dr. Whale. He’s on his way over.”

Panic shot through Emma’s system. “No,” she whispered. “No doctor..”

“Emma, you’re very sick,” Mary Margaret insisted, though her tone was still soft. “You need something to help you get better.” She wished she had known what to do without calling Whale, but honestly, she had never dealt with something this severe before. Sure, the kids at the school got sick all the time; but never anything deathly. A cold here and there, maybe the flu, or some strep throat. Emma looked like she had some kind of disease spreading through her.

Emma’s panic didn’t reside in the fact that she had no medical insurance. It was mainly her subconscious reminding her of the last reason she was in a hospital; the probing to make sure she really had gotten raped, the needles to hydrate her again, the endless, vicious cycle of questions…She couldn’t do that. Not with Whale, especially.

But the knock came at the door, and Emma just lay there, resigning herself to her own fate. Until the voice she heard from a distance was definitely not Whale’s, and when she opened her eyes, she was looking at Mr. Gold.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is where things start getting a little odd. I'm a very direct writer - I'm trying to make the characters' thoughts and feelings come out as in depth and natural as possible. I hope this works out well, though. I've finally figured a couple of things out, and I think it'll be fun to write. Thank you for being patient!

“Don’t touch me,” Emma rasped, trying to sink deeper into the couch. She didn’t trust Gold as far as she could throw him; and she was pretty sure she could chuck him across the town if she really wanted to. He was standing above her, scowling as she fought back every time he reached towards her. He wasn’t even going to touch her, for heaven’s sake. But Emma was sitting up now, albeit slumped down the couch, and she was scrambling backwards the best the couch would allow her every time his arm extended. Emma knew better. She didn’t know what his problem was, but there was something about him that always made her want to snoop into things that were likely none of her business. She preferred answers, and she just wasn’t comfortable not knowing what Gold was always up to.

“Sheriff, if you’ll simply hold still, I may be able to actually assist you,” Gold drawled, impatience clear in his tone. The look she gave him was pretty transparent; _‘how the hell are you going to help me?’_ He didn’t owe her an answer, nor did he even owe her what he was attempting to do for her at that moment. But clearly he had his own motifs anyway – he always did. These things were never for the benefit of someone else.

Emma wasn’t having it. “Don’t…touch me…” She felt like death, but the warning was clear in her tone; touch her, and she wasn’t going to be so nice about it anymore. She could feel a little of her strength returning just with that thought. She never landed herself in a situation where she couldn’t protect herself if she needed to. Not like she was afraid of Gold…she just didn’t trust him.

And she would keep telling herself that.

“Where’s Whale?” Emma asked for the third time since Gold had walked through the door. She was expecting a doctor, not a con artist. By the heavy sigh the man in front of her let out, Emma figured that he had absolutely no idea; he wasn’t here to take over for him or to cut him off. He wanted something, and Emma just couldn’t figure out what.

“Whale isn’t going to be able to treat what I believe you have, Sheriff Swan,” Gold finally said as he lowered his hand to his cane. His eyes were impatient, but very serious. It was disconcerting, especially considering Emma had no idea what he was talking about. “You’ll find it in your best interest to let me verify.”

Something in the way he said it…Emma suddenly wondered exactly whatever this was would do to her, if it was, indeed, what he was thinking it was. “Mary Margaret,” Emma finally said, heavy eyes turning to look at her friend, who was looking between the two with a very protective frown, but a confused curiosity, mixed between it. Hearing her name, however, her eyes snapped to Emma’s, and concern filled her gaze once again. “Could you make me cocoa?” Emma continued. She hated asking for things, but she needed her out of the room. At least until Whale got there. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Mary Margaret – she basically told her everything anyway, save her recent encounters with Regina – but this was something she needed to speak to Gold about alone. She could tell it was one of those conversations that she was going to have to swallow very, very slowly.

Mary Margaret threw a cautious look at Gold, but Emma just shook her head weakly. “Please,” she added, and the pixie haired woman sighed. With a nod, she turned and headed for the kitchen; disappearing a moment later. When Emma turned her attention back to Gold, he was simply looking at her with an arched brow.

“You’re quite the stubborn one, aren’t you?” Gold said before Emma could even question what the hell his problem was. “It may not make sense to you right away, Miss Swan, but I really must assess something. Something I believe you have.”

“Are you going to tell me what it is if I have it?” Emma asked cautiously. “And what exactly are you going to do to figure it out?” She had a lot more questions than that, but something told her she wasn’t getting answers if she threw them all out at once. Then again, she likely wasn’t going to get any answers at all. Gold had a habit of doing things his way, and then never explaining himself. Even when he looked like a complete and total creep in the process.

“That depends,” Gold said, surprising Emma with an answer to her first question. “As to what I’m going to do…I simply need you to hold out your arm. Palm up, fingers straight. I will not be touching you,” he added when she opened her mouth to protest, a very sharp look overtaking Emma’s features. “Do as I say.” It was sharp; Emma didn’t exactly agree with being spoken to like that. He was lucky her curiosity was suddenly getting the better of her.

Slowly, Emma extended her arm. It was a lot more effort than she had anticipated; her energy was still drained. She was a little more alert and aware than she was earlier, at least, but that came with growing up with the need to protect herself in untrustworthy situations. Still slow, Emma turned her arm over until her palm was facing the ceiling, then uncurled her fingers. Dull green stared at the suited man, waiting; holding her breath without even realizing what she was doing.

It was ridiculously short, and Emma didn’t understand a damn thing that happened. Gold reached out his hand again, hovering his own palm over hers. His eyes closed, brow furrowed in concentration. Emma watched him, brows lifting in slight disbelief; what the hell was he doing? He didn’t seriously think that this was some kind of method of detecting illness, did he? He was devious, but she never took him for flat out insane. Maybe she needed to start considering the possibility. His hand traveled to hover over her wrist, near her pulse; he wasn’t touching her, but she could feel the heat of his hand, and she almost knocked it away. But something about this had her far too intrigued for her own good.

After what must have only been thirty seconds, Gold dropped his hand back to the head of his cane and opened his eyes. The look he was giving her was what broke Emma’s patience altogether; he was looking at her like she was some rare jewel he had just acquired, and she was _NOT_ going to sit there and indulge him in his sick games. “ _What_ is going on, Gold?” she snapped coldly. For a minute there, her old fire was back.

“Allow Whale to examine you,” Gold said simply. Emma frowned.

“So does this mean I don’t have whatever you thought I did…?” She asked slowly. Not like she believed he even looked for anything in the first place. You don’t find illness by hovering over someone’s hand like a crazy person. What was this whole thing about?

“Forgive my intrusion,” Gold said, completely ignoring Emma’s question. He headed towards the door just as Mary Margaret came back with a cup of cocoa for Emma. As Emma took the mug with a heavy look of thanks, Gold turned back around to address Emma once more. “And one more thing, Miss Swan…I would be careful around Mayor Mills.”

Before Emma could ask him what the hell _that_ meant, he was gone.

xxxx

“Miss Swan, this is the third time I’ve called you in the past three hours,” Regina snapped into her cell phone as she paced her living room, fist planted on her black pencil skirt clad hip. “I’ve just checked Henry’s room – he’s _gone._ I’ve no idea where he went. You need to get over whatever this is and _call me back immediately!”_ Snapping the phone shut, Regina tossed – alright, more like flung – the device onto the coffee table and rubbed her temples. Stress was starting to wear on her, and now it was becoming visible. Her stance was far more tense than usual, her eyes were pinching, her voice was wavering in and out of her usual ice mode…this was completely unacceptable. But now her son was gone. _Gone._

It was completely lost on the brunette as to what had happened. Regina had gotten home from work before Henry got home from school, for once; when Henry did get home, he had flung his bag next to the door and stormed immediately up to his room. She’d had half a mind to follow him until hearing his door slam shut far harder than was normal for him. Concern was always evident with Regina in regards to Henry, but she did understand his need for space. She had resigned to giving him fifteen minutes to rage out whatever was happening through his Gameboy before going upstairs to check on him.

“Leave me alone,” was all Regina got in response to soft knocks on his bedroom door. Even after inquiring if he was alright, Regina got the same answer. Alright…so she would back down for now, but she would be going upstairs again in an hour to try again. One way or another, she was going to find out what was wrong. He had been acting far too strange lately for her to just let this go. Just as a precaution, Regina had called Emma’s cell phone. When she had started looking at the blonde as backup, she had no damn idea. The idea disgusted her, made her absolutely horrified with herself. This was Henry, for God’s sake. She had been doing this for far longer than the blonde had even thought of trying. She didn’t _need_ anyone else.

But she was calling anyway, and she was getting no response. Emma hadn’t been feeling well the last time Regina had been around her. She was likely asleep. No, she was surely asleep; she hadn’t had the paperwork dropped off yet, and she had been fairly adamant that she be given something to do if she couldn’t go into the station. Emma wouldn’t have completely given up on it if she hadn’t fallen asleep.

An hour later, Regina had gone back upstairs. His door was cracked – he had left the room briefly, for what, Regina had no idea – but was sprawled out now on his bed, facing away from her on his stomach. Regina had nudged his door open further so she could step inside, leaning against the wall next to said door and loosely folding her arms around her middle. She felt like her younger self around him sometimes; small and meek, and nowhere near confident enough to survive in the setting she was thrown into. Sometimes, she was nowhere near confident enough to approach him. He thought terribly of her, and he was the only one that mattered.

“Go away,” Henry said immediately upon realizing Regina was standing there. The brunette shook her head, clearing her head of the thoughts that had begun invading her as she pushed off the wall and moved to lower herself on the edge of his bed. “I said go away,” Henry repeated, louder this time.

“You’ll stop speaking to me like that, young man,” Regina replied, a little loud herself. She didn’t like pulling the ‘I’m your mother’ card, but he really did get out of control with who he believed was the boss sometimes. She had stopped ordering him around, for the most part; but he was still only ten years old. Far too young to be so grown.

Henry remained silent after that, glaring at the wall. At least, that was what Regina imagined he was doing, as she couldn’t see his face. It didn’t matter how many different ways she worded her concerned questions; he didn’t budge. He never did this. She was almost always able to get it out of him eventually. It would end with him in tears in her lap, and she would rock him back to silence and comfort for as long as it took. This wasn’t anywhere near that situation, and it made her feel sick to her stomach to think that it might never be that way again.

She was losing him.

When Regina exited the bedroom, she made another attempt on Emma’s cell phone. Nothing. The last call hadn’t resulted in a message, but this one had. And the very fact that she wasn’t hearing back…she wasn’t sure if she was angrier at Emma’s clear lack of concern, or worried because Emma was never _not_ concerned about Henry. No…not worried. Disadvantaged, perhaps, but not worried. Regina Mills was not worried about that insolent blonde Sheriff.

Regina had decided that dinner preparations would be more than adequate time to leave him alone. She would try again while they were eating, but she would only ask once; she didn’t want to chase him from the table. He needed to eat, and if he did choose to sit with her, she was too happy to do anything to ruin it. So she went about her lasagna, needing something to focus on. Once it was in the oven, she poured herself a glass of cider, _finally_ slipped out of her heels in the entryway, and padded into the living room to settle on the couch. She was tired. There was no denying it anymore. She had been so damn worried about Henry this past week, and work had been murdering her patience and her stature. She couldn’t believe she was considering sending Henry off with Emma for a couple of days so she could get some sleep.

As soon as the blonde crossed her mind again, Regna had looked at her cell phone. She’d had no idea why in the world Emma wasn’t calling her back. She was never this avoidant of anything to do with Henry, especially when something was wrong with him. Regina had forced herself not to linger, sipping her cider until she smelled the tantalizing aroma of her finished lasagna, then got up to go take it out of the oven.

When she climbed the stairs to get Henry for dinner, she had found his bedroom empty. His window wasn’t open, there was no indication he had slipped past her downstairs…she would have heard the door open. He was just gone. Vanished. And Regina didn’t even let reasoning kick in before full blown panic had taken over, and she was running – yes, _running_ – down the stairs for her phone. She had tried Henry first, then Emma. And now that all of that had happened, and she was standing in her living room with no other options, she knew where this was going to lead. And she was _not_ going to see that twisted, manipulative imp. She knew he knew who he was, and she wasn’t giving him the satisfaction. Not yet.

Not ever.

Regina shoved her shoes back on and grabbed her coat, storming from the house as she pushed her phone into her pocket. She checked the park, the arcade, the comic book store…nothing. Henry wasn’t at any of them. She wondered if he would go to Archie, but then dismissed that idea immediately; he knew that Archie would call Regina the minute the boy told him what he had done. The last plausible place would be Emma’s apartment. So be it. She would both find her son and figure out why the woman wasn’t’ answering her damn phone. Throwing her Mercedes into gear, she spun the steering wheel and took off towards the complex she knew Emma to reside in with that insufferable monster.

Less than ten minutes later, Regina was slamming her car door and throwing open the door of the complex, storming up the stairs. When she was standing outside of Mary Margaret’s front door, she could only glare at it for a while; she didn’t even want to touch the damn thing, with the knowledge of who lay on the other side of it. Drawing a deep breath through her nose, her fist lifted, knuckles rapping sharply on the wood.

Of course Mary Margaret would answer, instead of Emma. Of _course_ she would.

“Emma’s not feeling well,” Mary Margaret said immediately. “You shouldn’t –“

“I’m not here for Miss Swan,” Regina snipped shortly, cutting the woman off before she could continue. “I’m here for my son.”

“Henry?” Mary Margaret asked, brow furrowed. Regina only regarded her with a lifted brow, an expression that clearly showed how big of an idiotic statement that was. “I haven’t…he’s not here, if that’s what you’re asking,” the other brunette finished. “I haven’t seen him since the last time I was in class.”

“You haven’t been going to work?” Regina asked coolly. Not like she cared; but perhaps she could finally find a way to fire this woman clean out of the school.

“Emma’s not…” Sighing, Mary Margaret glanced over her shoulder for a moment. “She’s not doing well,” she finally finished. “I’ve been home with her. She shouldn’t be alone.”

Dark eyes flicked to the wood of the door, as if they could see through it. They couldn’t; Regina found herself curious to know just how badly off Emma really was. That twisting in her stomach was back, the one that was certainly _not_ concern for Emma herself, but for the boy that had just disappeared.

“Well,” Regina said finally, having completely composed her voice again. “She should know that Henry’s disappeared. Literally. Let me in.”

Mary Margaret immediately shook her head. “No,” she said firmly, and Regina stared at her. “She’s asleep,” Mary Margaret added. “I’m not waking her. Even if I did, she’s in absolutely no shape to be out there looking for Henry. She can barely sit up.” Pausing, the teacher sucked in a breath, looking hesitant, but like she had made up her mind. “I’ll help you.”

“You most certainly will not,” Regina replied with an indignant huff. Like she was letting _that_ anywhere near her car, let alone inside of it. “Let me in.” Why was she so hell bent on getting to Emma all of the sudden? Because she was Henry’s other mother, that was why. She hated admitting it to herself, but the situation called for it now. Emma knew how to find people. This was Emma’s specialty. She needed to wake the hell up and _find her son before –_

“Regina,” Mary Margaret said sharply, cutting the Mayor’s thought track short and causing her eyes to narrow. “Leave. Now. I’ll have Emma call you when she wakes up. I’ll start looking for Henry in places I know he goes.” _I’ve already done that, you idiot,_ was all Regina could think in response to that. “I’m sure he just wanted to get out for a while.”

“He’s ten,” Regina spit. “He has absolutely no right to –“

“I never said he did,” Mary Margaret cut in. “But this is Henry. Who went all the way to Boston to find his birth mother. Would you really be all that surprised?”

The look she was getting was so serious, and it made Regina was to rip it right off of her face. Mainly because Mary Margaret was right; Henry was a bit notorious for these disappearing acts…Perhaps he was just somewhere that he could get away for a while. Regina just wasn’t looking hard enough.

Scowling, Regina didn’t give any more words to the other woman. Turning on her heel, she headed down the stairs and slammed the door open, stepping into the cooling air of the evening. The sun was down now; there wasn’t much light left at all. Just enough to illuminate her pathway.

A pathway which was suddenly blocked. Regina’s eyes snapped up from where they were focused on the ground, opening her eyes to snarl at whoever dared get in her way, before she realized exactly who was standing in front of her.

“And what are _you_ doing here?” Regina spat. Gold simply regarded her calmly, looking far too nonchalant for Regina’s liking. She hated that man more than she cared to admit. Even if they did share a magical bond with each other, even if he did teach her everything she knew…she would never be able to kill him, but there was a part of her that hated him more than she hated Snow White. And that hate ran deeper than she had ever known possible.

“I could ask you the same question, Madam Mayor,” Gold said calmly. “Storming out of the living space of people you hate…are you ill?” Something glinted in his eyes that Regina didn’t like, and she was suddenly on guard.

“Where’s Henry?” she demanded suddenly. Gold looked genuinely confused; his head tilted, and his lips turned down into a frown.

“What do you mean?”

“Where’s Emma?” Regina tried a different approach, and this time, she got what she was looking for. His face twisted into the cool mask he always got when he was hiding something. Clearly, he hadn’t learned a damn thing. That look didn’t work on her anymore.

“Where….is Miss Swan?” Regina repeated, taking a threatening step towards Gold. She could see his amusement, but she was ready to blast him into the tree behind him. She gravely missed her magic; missed being able to just flick her wrist and end those in her way…But she wasn’t that person anymore, she reminded herself. Henry had changed her. She had other things to worry about now.

“Miss Swan is ill,” Gold finally said, his tone mocking. Like this was something she should have known; it _was_ something she had known, but it hadn’t been life threatening. What could possibly be causing her to drop off the radar like this, with everyone protecting her from Regina’s prying eyes?

“I have to wonder, You’re Majesty…” Regina hissed at the title, tensing with the confirmation that yes…he knew. He had known all along. “what kind of magic you still have at your disposal. For Miss Swan to be so ill…it must be more than you’re letting on.”

This little imp was pointing the finger at her! For what!? What could she possibly be doing with magic in a land that didn’t _have_ any? She would have died to have one more taste of magic lately, but it wasn’t possible. Where were these accusations coming from?

“You dirty little fool,” Regina finally spit. “Do you really think you’re going to pin whatever twisted little scheme you have on me? You forget, dear…I’m much more skilled at blackmail.” She advanced all the way on him this time, right in his face when she finally stopped. “Where…is my son? Where…is Emma?”

Gold only smiled at her, and it was so condescending, Regina could have screamed. She knew she didn’t have the upper hand in this. She thrived on control, and she was stuck wanting something here. Needing something. He knew it, and he was using it to his advantage. “Your son I cannot help you with,” Gold said finally. “But Emma is just upstairs. Where she’s always been.”

That’s what Regina had thought. Perhaps she should have worded it different – demanded to know what was wrong with her. But she determined right then and there that she would find out herself. Spinning on her heel, she slammed her way back into the building, barely remembering getting up the stairs before she was pounding on Mary Margaret’s door again. She heard a pained moan from the other side, and eventually the door opened to the brunette’s cross face again.

“Regina, I told you, Henry’s not –“

“ _Move_ ,” Regina hissed, shoving the door out of Mary Margaret’s hand and forcing her way inside. She was crossing through the kitchen by the time she heard Mary Margaret’s startled gasp, and her attempt at catching up with her. She didn’t try to stop her, though; not now that Regina was already inside. When the Mayor came to the living room, she was a lot more surprised at what she saw than she expected to be. Emma looked terrible; she was paler than Regina had ever seen anyone. The blanket was pushed off of her and hanging off the edge of the couch, and she was covered in a fine sheen of sweat. Her eyes were half open; so she was still conscious, but perhaps not completely. The thing that concerned Regina most were the purple, vein like lines running across her skin at all angles. They seemed to be pulsing, making the white of Emma’s skin even more noticeable against them.

Whale was knelt next to Emma, dabbing a wet cloth along her face and neck in an attempt to cool her body temperature. He looked absolutely distressed; Regina already knew he had never seen anything like this before. Regina had…once. A long time ago, back in the Forest, during the beginning stages of her marriage to the King. A young man had stolen from the garden, and the King had poisoned him, cursed him to die a slow death. And slow it had been, and painful. He was kept in a room in the castle to give appearances of the royal family attempting to save him, but in reality, he was just left alone to starve and grow even more ill. Regina had stolen inside of the room with some food once, and he had been glowing with purple, sickly veins that had almost completely taken over his body. It had been a lot more painful to watch than Regina was prepared for. She was in the room when he died.

As Regina crossed the room towards the couch, Whale looked up at Regina. He gave a tight smile in response to her terse nod, and looked back at Emma. “I don’t know what’s happening,” he admitted quietly. “She’s not getting any better. There aren’t any medications I know of that treat…whatever this is.” He sounded almost defeated. Regina looked at him for a moment, then back to Emma.

“Is she awake?” Regina asked. Whale nodded.

“She can hear us,” he said. “She just can’t speak or open her eyes more than she’s done already. Speaking seems to wear her out completely. She’s slept some, but not long enough to give her any actual resting time.”

Regina waved Whale aside so she could perch on the edge of the couch, next to Emma. Her hand came to rest over her forehead; it was burning up, but left a cold chill along her palm when she lifted it again. “Miss Swan,” she said finally. “Henry’s gone.” The response was almost immediate; Emma’s breathing picked up, and she tried to move her head, to open her mouth. It was useless. But the panic was clear in what Regina could see of her eyes. “I don’t know where he is,” she said. “He disappeared from his room. Now, I know you can get the energy to get up; you have to concentrate, and to want it badly enough. You need to get up and find our son.”

It was the first time she had referred to him as theirs; both of theirs. But this was no time to be selfish. She could see the attempts at moving, but Emma was weighed down by the illness that had taken over her. It was almost pitiful to watch. No matter how hard Regina tried, she couldn’t wipe the frown from her face, and she eventually found herself moving further up the couch so she could get a better look at Emma’s eyes.

“Look at me,” she said to the blonde. “Open your eyes. Try.” Emma tried, and tried harder, and just barely succeeded. Regina could see enough of her eyes, however, to determine what she was looking for. And there was no way Emma was going to be healthy enough any time soon to help Regina find Henry. She was going to have to do it herself. With a sharp breath, caught between irritation and confusion towards herself, Regina pushed herself from the couch and smoothed a hand down her white blouse; staring ahead of herself for a few long moments. Finally, she took a few steps away from Emma, only glancing back long enough to speak to Whale.

“I expect full reports on her after every visit you make here,” Regina said shortly. “Symptoms, theories…all of it. Starting with today. You’ll have it on my desk by morning.” With that, she swept from the apartment, not even sparing Mary Margaret a glance in the process.

She had a lot of work to do.

 

**Author's Note:**

> So. Does this work out better than the original? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Definitely let me know what you'd like to see, what you think is going to happen, etc. All of these things encourage me! Thank you so much for reading!


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